Arizona NORML is calling on all activists to take action to stop HB2061, the controversial new bill from Rep.Kelly Townsend, (R-LD16) that would add pregnancy as a disqualifying condition for women seeking medical cards. Outrage has been immediate since Day 1 of the state legislature.

“It is a horrific medical decision and terrible public health policy to insert a politician between a woman and her doctor,” notes Heather Manus of the Arizona Cannabis Nurses Association. Statistics from the 2014 AZDHS Medical Marijuana report show that over ten thousand Arizona women of childbearing age have medical cards and could have their cards revoked if they should become pregnant. The potential number of Arizona the women who could be blocked from applying for medical cards could number in the hundreds of thousands.

Kathy Inman of Momforce further explains: “Doctors recommend their patients continue taking most prescribed pharmaceuticals while pregnant, especially those for epilepsy. They also recommend continuing antidepressants like Paxil, one with proven debilitative and detrimental side effects. Cannabis has been found to be one of the safest and least addictive drugs available by the National Institutes of Health, and it is currently being used to replace harmful drugs prescribed for the above conditions. It is my opinion that pregnant women should not take any prescriptions that are not absolutely necessary. However, no woman should be considered a criminal for using a legal substance that is comparatively better for her health. ”

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All this potential devastation despite the fact that preventing prenatal access to cannabis flies in the face of mileania of medical practice of mid-wives and internet-age coffee table confessions. Among the modern medical studies, many experts point to Dr. Melanie Dreher’s study from Jamaica which showed babies expose to cannabis prenatally had better health outcomes than those who had not had cannabis consuming mothers.

More here: http://www.druglibrary.org/SCHAFFER/hemp/medical/can-babies.htm

This bill can be stopped with sufficient public outcry. It will require a change to the Prop 203 Medical Marijuna Act and that will require 3/4s vote from both houses of the state legislature. Citizen pushback can stop this thing in its tracks.

Contact your legislator today: call, email, Facebook, Twitter. Visit the state website to learn more about the process.

Here is a sample message.

 Hey, my name is ________ and I live in LD ___ [Don’t know what legislature district you live in? Check here] I am calling to speak with my representative/senator about HB2061, The Medical Marijuan Pregnancy Exclusion bill. I would like to register my complaints with this bill. It goes counter to good public health policy and I encourage Rep. _________________________/Sen. _____________________________ to vote against it. I also request to be scheduled for a meeting with the Sen/Rep  to discuss my position on cannabis with him/her.

Sincerely,

Your Name

If you should decide to schedule a meeting Arizona NORML would be happy to assit you in preparing for and attending the meeting. Contact 928-234-5633 for further details.

 

House Roster

Name Sort By Name
District Sort By District
Party
Email
Room
Phone (602)
Fax (602)
Karen Fann 1 R Send Email 316 926-5874 417-3001
Noel W. Campbell 1 R Send Email 345 926-3124 417-3287
J. Christopher Ackerley 2 R Send Email 127 926-3077 417-3277
Rosanna Gabaldón 2 D Send Email 117 926-3424 417-3129
Sally Ann Gonzales 3 D Send Email 331 926-3278 417-3127
Macario Saldate 3 D Send Email 332 926-4171 417-3162
Lisa A. Otondo 4 D Send Email 123 926-3002 417-3124
Charlene R. Fernandez 4 D Send Email 126 926-3098 417-3281
Sonny Borrelli 5 R Send Email 113 926-5051 417-3153
Regina Cobb 5 R Send Email 335 926-3126 417-3289
Brenda Barton 6 R Send Email 114 926-4129 417-3010
Bob Thorpe 6 R Send Email 130 926-5219 417-3118
Jennifer D. Benally 7 D Send Email 121 926-3079 417-3278
Albert Hale 7 D Send Email 323 926-4323 417-3160
Thomas “T.J.” Shope 8 R Send Email 112 926-3012 417-3123
Franklin M. Pratt 8 R Send Email 226 926-5761 417-3023
Randall Friese 9 D Send Email 325 926-3138 417-3272
Bruce Wheeler
Assistant Minority Leader
10 D Send Email 321 926-3300 417-3028
Stefanie Mach 10 D Send Email 329 926-3398 417-3126
Mark Finchem 11 R Send Email 337 926-3122 417-3286
Vince Leach 11 R Send Email 342 926-3106 417-3284
Edwin W. Farnsworth 12 R Send Email 224 926-5735 417-3122
Warren H. Petersen 12 R Send Email 312 926-4136 417-3222
Steve Montenegro
Majority Leader
13 R Send Email 208 926-5955 417-3168
Darin Mitchell 13 R Send Email 313 926-5894 417-3012
David M. Gowan Sr.
Speaker of the House
14 R Send Email 223 926-3312 417-3130
David W. Stevens 14 R Send Email 205 926-4321 417-3146
John M. Allen 15 R Send Email 131 926-4916 417-3150
Heather Carter 15 R Send Email 303 926-5503 417-3107
Doug Coleman 16 R Send Email 306 926-3160 417-3151
Kelly Townsend 16 R Send Email 302 926-4467 417-3018
Javan D. “J.D.” Mesnard 17 R Send Email 308 926-4481 417-3152
Jeff Weninger 17 R Send Email 338 926-3092 417-3279
Jill Norgaard 18 R Send Email 128 926-3140 417-3265
Bob Robson
Speaker Pro Tempore
18 R Send Email 222 926-5549 417-3157
Mark A. Cardenas 19 D Send Email 122 926-3014 417-3048
Diego Espinoza 19 D Send Email 118 926-3134 417-3273
Anthony Kern 20 R Send Email 341 926-3102 417-3282
Paul Boyer 20 R Send Email 129 926-4173 417-3153
Tony Rivero 21 R Send Email 344 926-3104 417-3283
Rick Gray 21 R Send Email 224 926-5993 417-3225
David Livingston
Majority Whip
22 R Send Email 207 926-4178 417-3154
Phil Lovas 22 R Send Email 110 926-3297 417-3004
Michelle B. Ugenti-Rita 23 R Send Email 111 926-4480 417-3155
Jay Lawrence 23 R Send Email 339 926-3095 417-3280
Ken Clark 24 D Send Email 115 926-3108 417-3285
Lela Alston 24 D Send Email 330 926-5829 417-3115
Justin Olson 25 R Send Email 204 926-5288 417-3161
Russell “Rusty” Bowers 25 R Send Email 309 926-3128 417-3290
Celeste Plumlee 26 D Send Email 119 926-4334 417-3009
Juan Jose Mendez 26 D Send Email 120 926-4124 417-3017
Reginald Bolding Jr. 27 D Send Email 116 926-3132 417-3274
Rebecca Rios
Minority Whip
27 D Send Email 322 926-3073 417-3288
Kate Brophy McGee 28 R Send Email 304 926-4486 417-3170
Eric Meyer
Minority Leader
28 D Send Email 320 926-3037 417-3111
Richard C. Andrade 29 D Send Email 125 926-3130 417-3292
Ceci Velasquez 29 D Send Email 124 926-3144 417-3245
Debbie McCune Davis 30 D Send Email 333 926-4485 417-3014
Jonathan R. Larkin 30 D Send Email 318 926-5058 417-3015

 

Senate Roster

Name Sort By Name
District Sort By District
Party
Email
Room
Phone (602)
Fax (602)
Steve Pierce 1 R Send Email 301 926-5584 417-3101
Andrea Dalessandro 2 D Send Email 312 926-5342 417-3169
Olivia Cajero Bedford 3 D Send Email 314 926-5835 417-3262
Lynne Pancrazi 4 D Send Email 308 926-3004 417-3179
Kelli Ward 5 R Resigned on 12/15/2015
Susan Donahue 5 R Send Email 304 926-4138 417-3067
Sylvia Allen
President Pro Tempore
6 R Send Email 303 926-5409 417-3105
Carlyle Begay 7 R Send Email 315 926-5862 417-3099
Barbara McGuire 8 D Send Email 314 926-5836 417-3131
Steve Farley
Assistant Minority Leader
9 D Send Email 213 926-3022 417-3128
David Bradley 10 D Send Email 315 926-5262 926-3429
Steve Smith 11 R Send Email 303 926-5685 417-3167
Andy Biggs
President
12 R Send Email 205 926-4371 417-3248
Don Shooter 13 R Send Email 200 926-4139 417-3024
Gail Griffin
Majority Whip
14 R Send Email 212 926-5895 417-3025
Nancy Barto 15 R Send Email 307 926-5766 417-3261
David C. Farnsworth 16 R Send Email 304 926-3020 417-3119
Steve Yarbrough
Majority Leader
17 R Send Email 212 926-5863 417-3121
Jeff Dial 18 R Send Email 304 926-5550 417-3120
Lupe Contreras
Minority Whip
19 D Send Email 313 926-5284 417-3106
Kimberly Yee 20 R Send Email 300 926-3024 417-3110
Debbie Lesko 21 R Send Email 302 926-5413 417-3109
Judy Burges 22 R Send Email 302 926-5861 417-3104
John Kavanagh 23 R Send Email 303A 926-5170 417-3108
Katie Hobbs
Minority Leader
24 D Send Email 213 926-5325 417-3149
Bob Worsley 25 R Send Email 310 926-5760 417-3091
Ed Ableser 26 D Resigned on 9/30/2015
Andrew C. Sherwood 26 D Send Email 305 926-3028 417-3038
Catherine Miranda 27 D Send Email 311 926-4893 417-3116
Adam Driggs 28 R Send Email 309 926-3016 417-3007
Martin Quezada
Minority Whip
29 D Send Email 313 926-5911 417-3113
Robert Meza 30 D Send Email 311 926-3425 417-3114